Sky News' Mark Kleinman, who writes a column for City AM, has revealed that Alistair Asher, a lawyer who advised the Britannia Building Society merge with the Co-op, will now join the mutual as its new general counsel and will heads up its legal services arm.

Mr Asher's appointment, which is to be announced to staff by the Co-op on Tuesday, will accelerate the overhaul of the mutual's management team under its new chief executive, Euan Sutherland.

His arrival will provide valuable experience on the restructuring of mutually-owned lenders, following his role advising on deals including the Co-op's merger with Britainnia in 2009.